Southside Baptist Church has stood at 1990 Llano Street in Port Neches, Texas, since 1957, and the congregation still describes itself with the same three words it has leaned on for decades: Faith, Family, and Fellowship. The motto is more than a slogan. Sunday mornings begin with a coffee bar and breakfast bites. A 10:30 worship service fills the auditorium while a nursery cares for babies through PreK and Kids' Church gathers K-3rd graders. Members say Southside is the kind of place where you are known, not lost in a crowd.
Sundays at Southside
The Sunday rhythm starts early. At 9:15 the coffee bar and breakfast bites open, giving neighbors a chance to settle in before the day begins. Bible studies for all ages follow at 9:30, and the whole church comes together for worship at 10:30. The music, preaching, dedicated prayer times, and Bible studies are what the congregation points to as the heart of Southside. Parents can step into the service knowing their youngest children are cared for in the nursery and their elementary kids are in their own Kids' Church.
Wednesday Nights for Kids, Youth, and Adults
Wednesday evenings at 6:30 keep the week connected. Children in PreK through 5th grade gather for Southside Kids, while 6th through 12th graders meet for Southside Youth. Both fall under the church's Next Gen Ministry, a push to build stronger families by loving on kids and teaching them about Jesus, and to equip today's youth to follow Christ in a challenging culture. At the same hour, adults gather for a Bible study and prayer meeting.
Life Together as Adults
Beyond the classroom, adults at Southside find their people in small groups that meet through the year. Faithful Friends gathers around dominoes and desserts, while Prayers & Squares is a quilting ministry that stitches comfort for members facing medical or bereavement needs. Sunday school get-togethers round out the calendar. Church leaders describe the membership as one of the most committed, involved, and connected church bodies around, and the regular fellowship around food is part of the church's DNA.
A Prayer Garden on the Property
Tucked onto the church grounds is a prayer garden, a quiet, well-kept space that members keep open for anyone who wants a serene place to spend time with the Lord at any hour. It is one of the small touches that makes the Llano Street campus feel less like a building and more like a neighborhood refuge.
What Southside Believes
Southside holds to a set of foundational, biblical convictions. The church teaches that there is one living and true God active in creation, that Jesus is the Son of God - born of a virgin, sinless, crucified, and physically resurrected, now seated at the right hand of the Father, and that He will return. The Bible is taken as the complete, inspired, and infallible Word of God. Southside believes in the Trinity, in humanity's need for salvation through Christ alone, and in a literal heaven for believers and a literal hell for those who reject Christ. The church sees itself as part of the broader Christian church made up of born-again, baptized believers of all ages.
Getting Connected
Southside Baptist Church is pastored by Matt Ruzicka, who joined the church at the beginning of 2025 and is currently working on his doctorate. He is joined by Kyle Nelson, the Next Gen Minister who oversees the kids and youth ministries and brings experience from years of mission work in Zambia. The church office is reachable at OfficeSouthsideBC@gmail.com or (409) 722-7550. Online giving is available through Tithe.ly, and sermons can be found on the church's YouTube channel.